The Graduate School’s office of Graduate Student Affairs offers regular and ongoing programs to help our students succeed during and beyond their time at the UW. We also offer student success programming for first-generation and international graduate students.
For additional events information, please refer to the bi-weekly grad student newsletter, the Grad Bulletin, which is sent to all currently enrolled graduate students, or check our Graduate School calendars.
Continuous
U501 – University 501 (U501) is a self-guided, online resource designed for graduate and professional students at all three campuses and is intended to help prepare you for your arrival to and start at the University of Washington.
Spring 2025
UW Three Minute Thesis Competition
Thursday, May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. (Doors open at 3:30 p.m.)
Auditorium, Alder Hall, Seattle campus
Register
Want to see University of Washington graduate students vie for cash prizes, by presenting their capstone or research projects in 3 minutes and using only 1 slide?! Join us for the 2025 UW Three Minute Thesis Competition! The theme this year is Impact. An esteemed panel of judges will select First Place and Runner Up winners and the in-person audience will vote for People’s Choice.
A recording of the event will be posted online at a later date.
Prizes sponsored by The Graduate School:
- First Place: $1,000
- Runner Up: $500
- People’s Choice: $500
This free event is open to the UW community. Following the presentations, there will be a reception with free light foods and refreshments.
Event partners: The Graduate Schools office of Graduate Student Affairs & UW Libraries Research Commons
View on The Graduate School calendar
Winter 2025
Call for Proposals: 2025 UW Three Minute Thesis (3MT)
Submit your proposal – Deadline extended: Wednesday, March 26, 2025 by Noon (PDT)
Theme: How does your graduate research demonstrate impact for the public good?
Are you a UW graduate student in the final stages of your capstone, thesis, or dissertation project? Submit a proposal for the 2025 UW Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition! Successful presenters from the online preliminary round will move forward to present at the final competition, with an opportunity to win First Place, Runner Up, or People’s Choice Awards. Cash prizes will be awarded.
The competition is open to all eligible graduate students from Bothell, Tacoma, and Seattle campuses.
- Online preliminary round: April 24, 2025, 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (PDT)
- Competition day (In-person): May 22, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m., Seattle campus
Event Partners: Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School & UW Libraries Research Commons
Download the flyer | View on The Graduate School calendar
Scholars’ Studio (Online)
Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. (PST)
Register to attend via Zoom
This fun, informal, interdisciplinary event features rapid-fire lightning talks by students doing Master’s and Doctoral level projects and research.
Hosted by the UW Libraries Research Commons and The Graduate School’s office of Graduate Student Affairs, Scholars’ Studio gives students the opportunity to share their research across disciplines, make connections and build presentation skills.
Send questions to mundtm@uw.edu | View on The Graduate School calendar.
Exploring Professions Beyond Academia: A 2-Day Career Symposium for Ph.D. Students & Postdocs
Tuesday, January 14, 2025 – For Social Sciences & Humanities
Tuesday, January 21, 2025 – For Sciences & Engineering
Seattle campus
Registration is full. Limited to 40 participants each day. Email Ziyan Bai (baiziyan@uw.edu), if you would like to be placed on the waitlist.
Are you just starting your Ph.D. program or in the process of finalizing your dissertation proposal? Have you reflected on future career paths after receiving your Ph.D.? Are you interested in career paths beyond academia? This symposium will provide you with insights, tools, informational resources, and professional connections to support your career exploration.
This event is free, but active participation is required.
Each symposium day will include:
- Presentations about career assessment tools & activities
- A moderated panel featuring PhD-level professionals
- Career exploration activities
- Networking opportunities
- Free dinner & refreshments
At the end of the event, you’ll be able to:
- Understand how career assessment tools can help you identify your interests, values, and skills
- Familiarize yourself with career exploration activities
- Learn insights from professionals working in non-academic careers
- Develop networking skills to build professional connections
Event partners: Center for International Relations & Cultural Leadership Exchange (CIRCLE), Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School, and Career & Internship Center
Download the event flyer. View on The Graduate School calendar: Jan. 14 & Jan. 21, 2025
Graduate Student Bowling Night
Friday, January 24, 2025, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m.
HUB Games, Seattle campus
Registration required
Winter is the perfect time to make connections! Join your graduate student peers on a Friday evening for a fun game of bowling and enjoy pizza and refreshments.
This free event is open to international, first-gen, historically underrepresented, and all graduate students.
Event partners: Center for International Relations & Cultural Leadership Exchange and the Graduate School’s offices of Graduate Student Affairs and Graduate Student Equity & Excellence.
View on The Graduate School calendar.
Call for Proposals: Scholars’ Studio
Deadline extended: Submit a proposal by February 11, 2025 by Noon (PST)
Virtual event on Thursday, February 27, 2025, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. (PST)
Questions? mundtm@uw.edu
Are you a grad student or postdoc who wants to perfect your presentation skills for a general audience? Then you should submit a proposal to give a 5-minute, low-stakes and fun lightning talk about your capstone, research, or pedagogy! Scholars’ Studio is an opportunity to practice communicating your work in front of a supportive general audience — without using a lot of technical or academic jargon.
Event partners: UW Libraries Research Commons & Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School.
Additional programming and events:
- Center for International Relations & Cultural Leadership Exchange
- Graduate Student Equity & Excellence
- Career & Internship Center
- Counseling Center
- Graduate & Professional Student Senate
- Q Center
- D Center
- Student Veteran Life
Fall 2024
Fall Welcome for First-Generation Graduate Students
Thursday, October 10, 2024, 5 p.m. – 6:15 p.m. (Doors open at 4:45 p.m.)
HUB 250, Seattle campus
Register as space is limited (login with UW NetID required).
Questions? uwgsa@uw.edu
New and returning first-generation graduate students are cordially invited to kick off the academic year by attending this welcome event! Build community with peers, hear insights from first-gen faculty and graduate student guest speakers, and enjoy free dinner and refreshments.
Featuring guest speakers:
- Dr. Kristie A. Spencer, Professor & Associate Chair, Speech & Hearing Sciences, Seattle campus
- Vincent Da, Master’s student, Health Administration, Seattle campus
View on The Graduate School calendar.
Event sponsor: Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School
Call for Proposals: Scholars’ Studio
Submit a proposal by Monday, Oct. 28 at Noon (Pacific Time)
Event on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m., Seattle campus
Questions? mundtm@uw.edu
Are you a grad student or postdoc who wants to perfect your presentation skills for a general audience? Then you should submit a proposal to give a 5-minute, low-stakes and fun lightning talk about your capstone, research, or pedagogy! Scholars’ Studio is an opportunity to practice communicating your work in front of a supportive general audience — without using a lot of technical or academic jargon.
View on The Graduate School calendar.
Event sponsors: UW Libraries Research Commons & Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School
Coping with Clouds: A Workshop & Social for Graduate Students
Thursday, October 31, 2024
HUB 340, UW Seattle campus
Changes in the seasons, especially to darker and colder times of the year, can have surprising or unexpected impacts on our physical, mental, and emotional health. Learn about the science behind those changes and the skills to thrive more successfully during seasonal challenges.
Free snacks and refreshments will be provided.
First session: Open to international graduate students
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Second session: Open to first-generation graduate students and historically underrepresented graduate students
12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.
Register for a session
Facilitated by LiveWell Peer Health Educators, in partnership with the Center for International Relations & Cultural Leadership Exchange and The Graduate School’s Graduate Student Affairs and Graduate Student Equity & Excellence. Send questions to Ziyan Bai, CIRCLE Assistant Director of Graduate Programs and Operations, at baiziyan@uw.edu.
Download the event flyer. | View on The Graduate School calendar.
Scholars’ Studio
Wednesday, November 20, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Green A, Research Commons (Allen Library South), Seattle Campus
Attend in person or register to attend on Zoom
Join us in person or online! This fun, informal, interdisciplinary event features rapid-fire lightning talks by students doing Master’s and Doctoral level projects and research. Light refreshments provided after Q&A. Hosted by the UW Libraries Research Commons and Graduate Student Affairs in The Graduate School.
Graduate Student Speakers & Topics
Tribal Rights, Tribal Privacy for Native American Indigenous Nations
Skyler Corbett-Hecocta
Master’s Student, iSchool
Tech vs. Tongue: Unlocking Language Through AI’s Failures
Anna Malin Gerke
PhD Student, German Studies
A Star In a Bottle: The Challenge and Prospect of Harnessing Nuclear Fusion on Earth
Aqil Khairi
PhD Student, Aeronautics & Astronautics
Aging is Stressful: The Impact of Cellular Age on Liquid-Liquid Separation in Biological Membranes
Sena Noaman
PhD Student, Chemistry
“We’re all born naked, and the rest is Communism”: The Art of Drag in Shanghai
Shelley Pryde
PhD Student, Feminist Studies
Using Biology for Sensing of Small Molecules
Ria Sonigra
PhD Student, Molecular Engineering & Sciences
Download the event flyer. View on The Graduate School calendar.